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Adams County prison workers get new labor contract

Corrections officers will not get raises this year, but will get a 2-percent increase in 2015

By Mark Walters

mwalters@eveningsun.com @walt_walters on Twitter

Posted:
03/13/2014 03:53:57 PM EDT

Adams County Prison officers are working under a new labor deal, according to county officials.

The new collective bargaining agreement between the county and the union representing nearly 100 unionized prison employees put a freeze on pay raises this year, said Sam Wiser, attorney with the Carlisle-based law firm Salzmann Hughes, P.C.

Under the new deal, prison union workers will get a 2-percent raise in 2015, a 3-percent raise in 2016 and a 2.5-percent raise in 2017, the final year of the contract.

If an employee stops working for the prison within two years of starting, he would be required to reimburse a portion of his training costs under the new deal, Wiser said. Additionally, prison officers' health insurance is comparative to the county's non-union employees.

The deal was made after nine months of ongoing negotiations, Wiser said, and the contract started upon the board's approval.

County and union officials — Adams County Prison officers are represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees District Council 89 — both expressed satisfaction in not only the deal, but the deal-making process.

Negotiations were reasonable and sensible, said Adams County Commissioner Chair Randy Phiel.

"The AFSCME union members recognized the economic climate we're in and the budgetary restraints of the county," Phiel said. "The last (negotiations) went to arbitration and that went on for a long time."

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